Adjustable fill height vent tube



April 20, 1965 J. M. CHERRY ADJUSTABLE FILL HEIGHT VENT TUBE Filed Sept.30. 1963 INVENTOR @was A?. f/75% BY /M/ ATTORNEYS United States Patent O3,179,133 ADFUSTABLE FHL iRilGl-H VENT TUBE .lames M. Cherry, Atlanta,Ga., assigner to The Coca- Cola Company, Atlanta, Ga., a corporation ofDelaware Filed Sept. 30, 1963, Ser. No. 3l2,63'7` 3 Claims. (Cl. 14h-4b)i The present invention relates to rotary iilling machines of thecounter-pressure type, and particularly to filler valve mechanisms ofthe type described and illustrated in U.S. Patent No. 2,467,684 to G. L.N. Meyer. This linvention is more especially directed to an improvedvent tube of the general type disclosed in U.S. Patent No.v

u "disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 2,467,684 and similar valves,

the bottle or other container is iirst counter-pressured with air or CO2by the mechanical means described in said patent. As is describedtherein, the air or CO2 is admitted into the filler valve body from thehead space of the liller bowl by the appropriate valving arrangement.The gas is simultaneously forced downward through the bore of the venttube, thence out through the small hole or holes drilled laterallythrough the vent tube near its lower extremity, thence into the bottle.

When the counter-pressure ot this gas in the bottle equals the pressureof the gassinV thehead space of the filler bowl another part in thefiller valve assembly automatically opens and permits the iiow of theproduct into the bottle by gravity. In order for this gravity dow of theproduct to continue, the gas above the liquid level in the bottle isexpelled through the small holes drilled laterally through the venttube, thence up the bore of the vent tube into the head space of theiillerbowl.

When the elevation of the product in the bottle -is sufiicient to coveror close the small lateral hole or vent aperture in the vent tube theexit for the counter-pressure gas in the bottle is thereby closed,causing the gravity flow of the product into the bottle to cease at atime when pressure of the entrapped gas is equal to the pressure exertedby the height of liquid vertically above the vent aperture.

If the lling `cycle ended at this time, then accurate i il :heightscould be obtained regardless of the size, shape or contour of thepackage. However, since the `filling cycle does not end at this point,the necessary remaining steps in the filling cycle cause difieren-t tillheights ot the product to result in packages or containers of varyingsize, shape or contour, as will now be explained.

After the iiow of the product into the bottle is stopped in the mannerdescribed above, it is necessary to shift or vent the head space of thecontainer to atmospheric pressure. This release of the head space gas toatmospheric pressure results in an additional volume of the productbeing released from the inner surfaces of the valve body assembly. Thisadditional volume of product raises the ll height to the desireddistance from the finish of the bottle.

lf the same lill height is required on another bottle having alargervolume in the till height area of the neck, this additional iiow ofproduct caused by shifting will i bottle without the necessity ofchanging vent tubes, by

ansias ICC have a larger volume to be contained in, and the result willbe a lill height lower than that desired. Conversely, it another bottlehasa smaller volume in the fill height area of the neck than theoriginal bottle, the additional flow ofproduct caused by snifting willresult in a lill height higher than desired.

` Moreover, modern high speed automated beverage lilling equipment iscapable of being `used flexibly with a variety of different sizedcontainers, all of which have a different vertical height andcorresponding ditierent internal capacities, such as 61/2 ounce, 8, lt),12, 16, 26 and 32 iiuid ounce sizes. with` its vent aperture atadilierent position on the side of the tube.' Y

A primary objective of the invention is to provide means for attainingany desirable till height for any size means of a construction whichpermits precise adjustment of the height of the vent aperture through`an ininite number of positions.

ltore specilically, it is an object of the invention to i provide a venttube comprising a tubular member having one end adapted for connection`to a filler valve mecha- Vnisnr of a rotary filler, at least a portionof the exterior surface of the tubular member being cylindrical, incombination with a sleeve surrounding and closely engaging the saidcylindrical portion of the tubular member, the tubular member beingprovided with slots of appropriate width and length located on differentsides of the tube or angularly displaced from each other. It is also afeature of these slots that they be so positioned along the vertical orlongitudinal axis of the tube as to cause said slots to overlap,preferably by an amount equal to the slot width, thus forming a throughpassage the minimum diameter of which equals the width of the slot. Atthe lower extremity of the lower :slot and at the upper eX- tremity ofthe upper slot a hole is drilled through the wall of the tube oppositeor angularly displaced from this portion of this slot.

The above-mentioned sleeve may be adjusted along the tube Vso as toclose oli any portion of either thev upper or lower slots, or both. Thesleeve is preferably `of resilient material and is so dimensioned thatitwill retain the position to which it is adjusted by means of thecontractive power of the material of which it is made.

The lower end of the bore of the tubular member is clrsed by a fixedmember permanently attached to the tu e.

The Vsleeve may be adjusted to its proper elevation, so that its loweredge is over either a point on the lower slot on one side of the tube orover a point on` the upper slot on the opposite side or the tube, by amechanical means herein later described. Since the elevation of thelower edge of the sleeve is the factor which controls ultimate lillheight, the lower the sleeve is positioned `on the tube (as long as itremains within the limits of the slots) thelower is the resultinglillheightifrorn the top of the finish of the bottle. Conversely, thehigher it is positioned on the tube, the higher the resulting ll height.As can be seen almost an infinite number of positions or adjustments canbe had between the limits of the opposing slots. It is this featurewhich enables this tube to till to a speciiied ill height all packagesof like size, shape, or contour regardless of what the size, shape, orcontour may be. This is not possible with Vent tubes of conventionaldesigns.

A further object is the provision, in combination with a vent tube asdescribed above, of a special tool for adjusting the sleeve along thevent tube to such position as to etlect achievement of the desired illheight. To assist in this operation the said tool is provided withsuitable graduations as described below.

Each size requires a vent tubeA Another object is the provision of saidspecial tool in and of itself.

A most important advantage is reduction in cost of v operation of thefilling` machinery. An example of the economic effect of this is to beunderstood in considering the inventory problem of a plant having llingmachinery using sixty tubes at a cost, for example, of $3.80 each, or$228.00. Some large plants have as many as six of these machines so thatin order to start up on 61/2` ounce production, they need $1,368.00worth of vent tubes alone. A plant of this size probably will alsoproduce a king-size product in either 10 or 12 ounce size, a 16 ouncesize and a home package of about a 26 ounce size, which will require astock of tubes for each size; so that for inventory alone for tubes forfour sizes, itis necessary to carry an original inventory of $5,472.00worth of vent tubes with an additional inventory of spare partsnecessitated because of the normal breakage and bending of tubes indaily use.

A further advantage is the saving in labor and overhead expense in downtime provided by the adjustable tubes. It will take one machinerymechanic an hour or an hour and a half to change 60 tubes, necessitatingnot only the labor costr of his time but the labor cost of the entireproduction crew who may be idle while the machine is down, and theoverhead loss on the equipment while the same is not being used.Production plants of this kind may change tubes once or twice a day asthey switch from one size to another, necessitated by the sellingconditions of that particular day. By quickly adjusting the fill heightof the installed tubes a major portion of this economic loss is avoided.

Another advantage is the provision of flexibility in till heightadjustment between the several vent tubes of a machine. As a practicalproposition, beverage delivery valves are temperamental and no matterhow nely machined to uniform tolerances, slight wear and malfunctionwill cause one or more of the delivery valves to vary below or above thedesired ll height. The adjustable feature of the present tube provides aquick and easy method of changing the height of the position of the sideaperture, thus solving this problem.

A further object is to provide a tube which can be easily cleaned andsanitized to comply with sanitary codes of the various governmentalbodies. The sleeve can be easily removed over the lower end of the tubefor complete inspection and sanitizing of the sleeve and the tube.

Other and further objects, features and advantages will be apparent fromthe description which follows, read in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIGURE l is a vertical section through the filler valve mechanism of arotary filling machine of the counterpressure type, showing the venttube of the present invention in elevation;

FIGURES 2 and 3 are fragmentary axial sections through the lower portionof the device of the invention, showing the adjustable sleeve indifferent positions;

FIGURE 4 is a section on line 4-4 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is an elevation illustrating the tool ernployed for adjustingthe sleeve along the vent tube, the tool being shown in the position,relative to the vent tube, which it occupies as the said adjustment iscompleted;

FIGURE 6 is a view, partly in axial section and partly in elevation, androtated 90, of the tool and vent tube portion seen in FIGURE 5;

4 FIGURE 7 is a transverse section on line 7 7 of FIGURE 6; and

FIGURE 8 is a transverse section on line 8-8 of FIGURE 6. v In order tofacilitate an understanding of the invention, referenceis made to theembodiment thereof shown in the accompanying drawings and detaileddescriptive language is employed. It will nevertheless be understoodthat no limitation of the invention is thereby iutended and that variouschanges and alterations are contemplated such as would ordinarily occurto one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral 10 designates the filler bowl ofa rotary filling machine corresponding to that described and illustratedin U.S. Patent No. 2,847,043, to which reference is made for a moredetailed description of the operation of the filler value mechanism. Thevalve 11 is provided with an internally threaded wall 12 surrounding itscentral bore 13 for engagement with the externally threaded upper end 14of the vent tube 15 of the present invention.

The vent tube 15 comprises a tubular member 16 provided with a centralbore 17 throughout its length, a sleeve 18 and a member 19 permanentlyclosing the lower end of the tube. The tubular member 1o is providedwith a spreader element 20 in the conventional manner.

In the illustrated embodiment the tubular member 16 is cylindrical andof uniform diameter throughout. rl`his is conventional and preferable,but for the purposes of the present invention is not essential, it beingrequired only that the external surface of the member 16 correspond inshape and dimension to the internal surface of the sleeve 18 to providefor the necessary cooperation between these two elements. Accordingly,in the illustrated embodiment the sleeve 18 is cylindrical externallyand internally, the sleeve being formed of resilient material, yforexample, a suitable plastic material, and of such internal diameter asto engage the tube 16 sufficiently tightly to prevent inadvertentmovement of the sleeve along the tube. The wall of the tube 16 isprovided with an axially elongated lower slot 21 near its lower end, acircular aperture 22, of a diameter equal to the width of slot 21,angularly displaced from and preferably opposite the lower end of theslot 21, an axially elongated upper slot 23 and a circular aperture 22a,of a diameter equal to the width of slot 23, angularly displaced fromand preferably opposite the upper end of slot 23. The slot 23 isangularly displaced from and preferably extends through the wallopposite the slot 21, the lower end of the slot 23 overlapping the upperend of the slot 21 by an amount preferably corresponding to the widthsof the two slots, which are equal. Thus, the overlapping portions of theslots 21 and 23 constitute the ends of a through passage having aminimum diameter equal to the width of the slots, the upper and lowerends of which are preferably semicircular. The purpose of the throughpassage just described, and of the through passage corresponding to thelower end of slot 21 and the circular aperture 22 and the throughpassage corresponding to the upper end of slot 23 and circular aperture22a is to provide cross-venting in any position of the sleeve 18. Suchcross-venting is beneficial to the proper operation of the vent tube andthe aforesaid through passages also facilitate cleaning of the venttubes. Again, they are useful in installing and removing the tubes,since they provide for the insertion therethrough of a pin which may beused for rotating the tube into and out of threaded engagement with thevalve 11.

Because of the location of the slots 21 and 23 at angularly displacedand preferably angularly opposite points of the tube 16, the slots haveconsiderably less weakening effect on the tube than if a single longerslot were employed. Also, as described above, this positioning of theslots permits cross-venting when the sleeve 1S is in an upper positionand the liquid level is above the aperture 22. Circular aperture 22apermits cross-venting when the lower edge of sleeve 18 is at the upperend of slot 23 and the liquid level has risen above the upper end ofslot 21.

Rapid and precise adjustment of the sleeve 18 along the tube 16 so as toprovide a vent opening at the precise level to result in the desiredlill height is possible with the aid of the special tool illustrated inFIGURES 5 to 8,

inclusive. The tool 24 comprises a barrel 25 having a generallysemicylindrical upper portion 26 and a generally cylindrical lowerportion 27. The outer sur-face of the upper portion 26 is preferablyconically tapered as shown. The barrel 25 is provided with an axial bore28 of a diameter somewhat larger than that of the tubular member 16,merging with an axial bore 29 of a diameter equal to that of the tube16. The bore 29 extends from the upper end of the bore 28 through theshoulder 30 forming the upper end of the cylindrical portion 27 and tothe upper end of the semicylindrical portion 26,` this upper portion ofthe bore 29 presenting an inner surface which, like the portion 26 ofthe barrel 25, is semicylindrical. The lower end of the bore 28 isprovided with threads 31 to engage a threaded pin 32 having a knurledhead 33,` a threaded shank 34, a reduced intermediate shank portion 35,and a still further reduced upper shank portion 36 of a diametersubstantially equaling that of the tube 16, there being sutcienttolerance between the shank portion 36 and the bore 22 to permitrelative axial movement therebetween. A lock nut 37 threaded on theshank portion 34 enables the pin 32 to be secured in its adjustedposition relative to the barrel 25.

Near its upper end the semicylindrical portion 26 is provided with asemicylindrical recess 38, coaxial with the bore 29, the semicylindricalrecess 38 having an inner surface which corresponds in axial dimensionand radius of curvature with the outer surface of the sleeve 18,

thus providing a socket in which the sleeve 18 may be engaged formovement along the tube 16 by manipulation of the tool 24 in an axialdirection. The lower part of the semicylindrical portion26 is preferablyprovided, on its dat face, with numbered gra-duations as indicated at 39in FIGURE 5.

To adjust the sleeve 18 to a desired position on the tube 16,corresponding to a desired till height, the operation is as follows. Thelock nut 37 being disengaged from the lower end of the barrel 25, thepin 32 is retracted by counterclockwise rotation until the end of theshank portion 36 is ush with the shoulder 30, or at least suticientlyretracted to permit of the required manipulation. The inner surface ofthe recess or socket 38 is then engaged with the outer sur-face ofsleeve 18 and a downward movement imparted to the tool such that thelower end of the sleeve 18 is brought to a point below the desiredposition. The pin 32 is then rotated inra clockwise direction until theupper end of the portion 36 is at a predetermined desired position,preferably as indicated by the graduations 39. The lock nut 37 is thenrotated until it engages the lower end of the barrel 25, thus lockingthe pin 32 in the adjusted position. The tool, with the sleeve 18 snuglyengaged within the recess 38, is then moved upwardly until the upperVend of the shank portion 36 of the pin 32 engages the closure member 12at the bottom of the tube 16, this engagement limiting the upwardmovement of the tool, which is then disengaged from the sleeve 18. Ifthe end-wise position of the pin 32 has been correctly predetermined,the bottom of the sleeve 18 will then be at the precise desired levelalong the tube 16, to effect the desired container ll height.

From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that the device ofthe invention will achieve the objects and possess the advantagesenumerated above.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new yand desiredto be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. An adjustable vent device comprising a vertically disposed tubularmember and formed with a cylindrical outer surface adjacent its lowerend and having a plurality of vertically elongated slots extendingthrough the wall thereof in the area of said cylindrical surface, saidslots being angularly spaced and horizontally disaligned with an endportion only of each slot disposed at the same level as an end portionof an adjacent slot to form an unobstructed horizontal passage throughsaid tubular member at said level, said tubular member having aperturesthrough said wall at the levels of and angularly spaced from the lowerend portion of the lowermost slot `and the upper end portion of theuppermost slot, a sleeve n having a generally cylindrical inner surfacesurrounding and closely engaging said cylindrical outer surface, saidsleeve having an axial dimension at least substantially equal to thetotal vertical dimension of said slots, said sleeve being movable alongsaid tubular member to expose said slots to a precise desired extent.

2. A device according to claim 1, said sleeve resiliently gripping saidcylindrical outer surface with suicient force to prevent inadvertentmovement of said sleeve relative to said surface.

3. A device according to claim 1, said slots being two in number andbeing located on opposite sides of said tubular member.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,453,895 5/23Swift 81-3 2,063,326 12/36 Meyer 141-57 XR 2,591,071 4/52 Huggins et al141-288 XR 2,640,640 6/53 Meyer 141-305 2,688,267 9/54 Schmuldt 81-32,847,043 8/58 Sommers 141-305 FOREIGN PATENTS 480,462 8/29 Germany.

LAVERNE D. GEIGER, Primary Examiner.

1. AN ADJUSTABLE VENT DEVICE COMPRISING A VERTICALLY DISPOSED TUBULARMEMBER AND FORMED WITH A CYLINDRICAL OUTER SURFACE ADJACENT ITS LOWEREND AND HAVING A PLURALITY OF VERTICALLY ELONGATED SLOTS EXTENDINGTHROUGH THE WALL THEREOF IN THE AREA OF SAID CYLINDRICAL SURFACE, SAIDSLOTS BEING ANGULARLY SPACED AND HORIZONTALLY DISALIGNED WITH AN ENDPORTION ONLY OF EACH SLOT DISPOSED AT THE SAME LEVEL AS AN END PORTIONOF AN ADJCENT SLOT TO FORM AN UNOBSTRUCTED HORIZONTAL PASSAGE THROUGHSAID TUBULAR MEMBER AT SAID LEVEL, SAID TUBULAR MEMER HAVING APERTURESTHROUGH SAID WALL AT THE LEVELS OF AND ANGULARLY SPACED FROM THE LOWEREND PORTION OF THE LOWERMOST SLOT